The invention relates to a hand-held concrete edging tool or trowel, broadly, and more particularly relates to a hand-held concrete finishing edging tool or trowel, configured with a water application system and a tool vibration system for applying water and vibrations to a portion of setting concrete, for example, an edge portion to optimize smoothing and finishing, e.g., edging.
As is known, when concrete is poured, it is finished by trowelling to give the concrete work a desire finish and in addition, the edges of the concrete work are finished with an edging tool to provide a rounded or arcuate edge to the work. To realize such a rounded or arcuate edge, edge finishing tools are used. Edge finishing tools generally comprise a flat rectangular portion and a downwardly curved portion along one of the longer edges. The blade is attached to a long, u-shaped handle and is used to finish freshly-poured cement. The downwardly curved portion provides the rounded or arcuate edge during use.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,045,271 to Cinotti discloses a universal concrete edger that is adaptable for use with left- and right-handed concrete workers, having a handle that is rotatable relative to the blade of the edger.
In order to finish or provide a smooth surface to a concrete work, it is frequently necessary to rewet the concrete surface, and this is done separately, usually by dipping a brush into a container of water and splashing water onto the surface to be finished. The blade is then moved across the surface to provide a smooth corner with a bevel. A disadvantage with applying water by splashing from a brush is that it typically fails to uniformly wet the edges of the concrete work, and may result in surface voids and irregularities.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,362,165 to Kluga provides a concrete hand edger tool with water spray, in order to overcome the shortcomings of using a brush to spray water onto and wet edges of a concrete work. The concrete hand edger tool of U.S. Pat. No. 5,362,165 comprises a rectangular blade with opposed ends, and a longitudinal handle. A water spray nozzle is provided on the handle and is directed downward and outwardly in a direction beyond one end of the blade. Means are provided to supply water under pressure to the spray nozzle in an intermittent fashion. For example, a water tank is provided between the blade and the handle, and a manually operated pump having a squeeze bulb for operation also is located in the handle for access by a user to spray water in the advance path of the edger. A disadvantage with such a hand edger tool, however, is that the act of pumping the bulb causes an inconsistency in the pressure applied downwardly against a surface of the concrete work, as the tool is passed over the wetted path of the concrete edger.